There's You in Everything I Do
by cooliochick5
Summary: On this particularly cool day, Lie Ren found himself standing in the middle of an ever familiar courtyard. The slightly cold air was calm and still around him, allowing a feeling of peace to settle within his chest… It was on days like this that he was almost amazed to see the school standing in one piece again. Future AU.
1. Chapter 1

The leaves around Beacon academy had long since turned from green to orange, as summer slowly turned to fall. On this particularly cool day, Lie Ren found himself standing in the middle of an ever familiar courtyard. The slightly cold air was calm and still around him, allowing a feeling of peace to settle within his chest… It was on days like this that he was almost amazed to see the school standing in one piece again.

It felt like just yesterday that the foundation was brought to its knees and the school had fallen. It felt like barely any time had gone away since then, but then reality would sink in again. Ren could feel how much time had passed, with the healing of every broken bone, pulled muscle, sleepless night- He felt it. He could see it in the obvious age that had settled in his face, and in the faces of his friends and loved ones.

They had all changed in some way or another in the passing of the years, including some old students returning with their children, but there were some things that-

BOOM!

As usual, this peaceful trail of thought only lasted for a few seconds, as it was quickly ended with the sounds of the yelps of several frightened students.

"That's the third time this week!" One student exclaimed.

Several others just cried out, some gripping one or two of their peers by their elbows to help them to their feet again, while others ran in many different directions. A chair from one of the third story classrooms had been tossed from the window, landing amidst the fray, but somehow (luckily?) dodging any and all students.

"What on-"

As if the chair and screaming wasn't bad enough- loud blasts, and soon several rattling desks rained down from the sky like rain fall, with the shake of the building down striking down to its core. Lie Ren cast his eyes toward the building, hands finding his hips as he watched in awe. When the dust began to finally settle, the seconds seemed to count themselves down, awaiting feedback from whichever poor teacher had their classroom viciously destroyed.

"Arc, Wukong, Vasilias! Report to the Headmaster's Office! IMMEDIATELY!" The poor teacher bellowed.

"Some things never change…" Ren mumbled to himself as he turned his back from the damaged building, calling up to the teacher over his shoulder. "Are you alright, sir?"

"I'm fine, just- YOU TOO, LIE!" The teacher's tone went from amused to annoyed in an instance, causing Ren to stop dead in his tracks.

"Of course…" The man groaned with a pang of irritation in his tone, as he turned and redirected himself to the head office instead.

* * *

"Do you four have any idea how much damage you have caused?" A coffee mug is slammed onto the desk separating the four teenagers from their headmaster.

The four exchange glances, seemingly exchanging silent answers. Titters and grunts of suppressed laughter followed, ending only when the leader of the four spoke up.

"Um, sir, the amount of damage we caused is well within the school's policy-" The answer was clearly NOT one the older man wants to hear, but it is not wrong either.

"That's true, after Beacon was rebuilt, the curriculum HAD changed… Focusing more on combat rather than paper and pencil work- Though I never agre-…" The Headmaster muttered, wanting to acknowledge where the student was correct, but viening slightly off topic. "HOWEVER! That doesn't mean you can go destroying a classroom!"

"We didn't destroy it...just, er, roughed it up a bit-"

"That's enough out of you, Wukong!" With that, the blonde male shrunk back into his seat., "You all should be considered for expulsion after the amount of stunts you've been pulling lately...I just don't understand-"

"D-er, Mr. Arc, you can't-"

"I'm the Headmaster, Eli! I can and will- Or I would... but instead I'll send you four to see Ms. Rose for your punishments!" The headmaster, one Jaune Arc, stood from his desk, gesturing for the team to stand with him,

"But-" Eli stammered.

"Your mother would be disappointed in you…" Jaune cut off, his gaze casts back to Eli.

'Will you be calling our parents?" The leader, Lie Joan, asked in a soft tone as she glanced up.

"No need," Jaune folds his hands behind his back, eyes leaving the red-head and turning toward the door, "I know your dad will catch your mother up to speed, and we all know how news tends to spread from there."

"Quicker than I can tell her..." Ren's disproving tone suddenly floats into the room, causing everyone to visibly tense up.

"I'm dead, aren't I?" Joan whined, her tone causing her to sound like a younger, more accented version of her mother.

"Perhaps a bit." Ren sighed, though he can't seem to keep the ghosting of a smirk off his face.

He could imagine Nora's delighted face when he tells her of their daughter's recent 'Fight club' meeting. It's the same face she made EVERY TIME their daughter pulled a stunt like this. However, it was still Ren's hope that this "club" wouldn't be a permanent extra curriculum in their beloved daughter's school years.

* * *

"Guys...this might be a crazy thought here, but, maybe we should- ya know… Disband 'fight club'?" The third member of the team, Uzziah Wukong, mutters while he shuffles past Ms. Ruby Rose's desk, grabbing a sucker and detention slip as he passes.

"Disband fight club!? How else would I get my favorite nieces and nephews to visit me!?" Ruby jumps from her chair, "I mean- see you four in detention…?"

"You know you love us!" Eli laughed as the raven-haired woman gives a short wave, idly reaching into her desk to refill the candy dish,

"See ya, Aunt Ruby!" The final member, Liesbet Vasilias , called back, laughing happily as the group files out of the office, only to quickly turn serious. "Anyway, we can't just 'disband'! We have to leave our mark, remember?"

"Yeah, I guess, but all we've accomplished so far is six detentions in one month!" Uzziah retorts, folding his hands behind his neck, "And, no offense, but I'm really getting sick of seeing Eli's dad…"

"Slight offence…" The redheaded Arc groaned, running a hand over his slightly chubby face, "But I agree with you. He keeps trying to guilt trip me with mom, and it's really-"

"Guys, if Team JEUL is gonna go down in history as the team with the most detentions, then so be it! We got a rep to keep, people!" Joan throws her arms above her head, causing the rest of her team to turn to face her, "That...sounded better in my head…"

"And my mom is a huge fan of ours, " Liesbet ran tentative fingers through her blonde hair, as she usually did whenever she wasn't fully invested in a thought.

"Yeah! With Yang Vasilias as our sponsor, there's no way we can get expelled for this!" Joan chirped. "I forgot all about that!"

"But with Captain Hardass in business..." Uzziah cut in, "There's no way we can keep this up…"

"Would ya stop making up names for him?" Eli huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest, a scowl fixing on his face. "Sure, he probably knows every trick in the book, but-"

"Actually…" Joan turns her eyes toward the floor, " Commander Dick-Von-Ass-Hat seems pretty fitting."

"Or President No-Fun-Time." Liesbet reminded, jumping back into the conversation now that hair hair was tangle-free.

A slew of laughter that followed, which in no way helped to quell young Eli's ever growing anger.

"Alright, alright, SHUT UP!" The male's fists clenched, jaw setting has he walked past his teammates.

"Oh, come on, Arc! Don't be such a Corprol Dick-Von-Ass-Hat!" Uzziah took a step forward, though he knew better than to follow his teammate. Joan's face fell, watching her partner stalk off toward their dorm.

"Guys...maybe we should chill for a while...just until things calm down…" Liesbet sighed, putting both hands on Joan's shoulders in a 'settle' type way.

"Let the "Corporal" go. He'll be fine by detention tonight…"

And with that, the remaining three members of Team Juel set off toward the dorms, a silence settling over them as they walked, ignoring the sudden cold wafting in through the hallways from the outside.

 _ **A/N: A little Future AU I decided to work on over break. A big shout-out to PurpleDragon6 for being my beta reader and for all of you who stick around for this emotion-coaster.**_

 _ **Disclaimers: I own nothing.**_


	2. Chapter 2

"Man, I can't wait for detention!" Joan laughed as she threw her arms up above her head. "Detention with Aunt Ruby is always GREEEEEAT!"

With another howling laugh, the redhead proceeded to jump about on her and her roommates' beds, all of whom seemed equally excited for what as typically seen as a punishment.

"Alright, we got popcorn, soda, whole milk, a few boxes of pop rocks- So,I think we're good." Liesbet hummed while looking over the items in the pillowcase she had packed.

"Do you think Aunt Ruby will finally tell us about the Fall of Beacon?" Uzziah asked as he pushed himself over the edge of his bed, expertly moving into a handstand.

"DUUUUUUH! You think she wouldn't?" Joan scoffs, jabbing a finger into the blonde's side to knock him over.

"Of course not, dummy! She was going to tell us about how the teams were formed!" Liesbet huffed, slinging the pillowcase over her shoulder.

"Boring! I don't wanna hear about how my parents met… They tell me THAT enough as is..." Rubbing his now sore side, Uzziah cleared his throat in an attempt to impersonate his mother. "It was sooo crazy…"

"Ha! You should be the one to tell the story! Aunt Ruby NEVER does voices! Too bad." Joan cackled, but then turned her head side to side before realization hit,"Now, where's Eli?"

"He didn't come back to the dorm?" Uzziah hummed, looking around the room.

"I didn't notice?" Liesbet shrugged, "He knows where to go; Maybe he's already in the detention hall."

"Typical Eli... He'd be early to his own funeral!" Uzziah sighed as he clambered toward the door, "As for us- we'll be late."

Gathering the rest of their treats, the remaining members of Team JUEL sprinted out the door.

* * *

"So, there we were, all alone in the woods, Grimm everywhere!" Ruby hunched over her desk, gripping the sides for effect, "And then, out of nowhere-"

Suddenly, the woman dropped her hands, reached for a nearby bowl, and proceeded to grab a handful of popcorn. This succeeded in gather several loud, drawn out groans and growls from the detention attendees.

"Aunt Ruby, you're killing us here!" Liesbet groaned, watching as the older woman shoved more popcorn in her mouth.

"O' p'eas'," Ruby rolled her eyes, swallowing, "You've heard this before; I made eye contact with Aunt Weiss, Yang partnered with Blake, and the rest is continued in the next story."

"Aunt Ruby, what about my parents? I'd give anything to hear the nitty gritty on those two!" Joan cried as she swiped a box of pop rocks from Uzziah, offering it to the woman as if it were a sacrificial offering in exchange for the story.

"Ren and Nora? Those two could never be separated!" The older woman stated very matter-of-factly.

"Mom always said she attracted dad with sloth sounds…" Joan raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah, she did that, too. Man, your mom is something else- like there was this one time, in Team R-"

"Wait just a minute, old lady! What about the rest of Team JNPR?" Joan cut in once more, pulling her knees to her chest.

"Oh, right! Jaune was literally hanging around whe-" Ruby's story in cut-off once more as the heavy doors in the back of the room are pushed open.

In came Eli, sprinting at his top speed, which was not deterred by the pushing of the heavy doors. With a loud breath, he skidded to a halt just in front of Ruby's desk, puffing out a quick apology before fumbling to find an open chair to quickly collapse into.

"Eli! You're right on time! I was just telling these guys about how the teams were formed!" Ruby cheered, completely ignoring the fact that Eli was more than a half hour late for detention. "Anyway- So Jaune was literally hanging around-"

"-And my father was stuck in a tree when he met his partner." Eli huffed tiredly, smiling up with a cheery grin.

"Exactly! Your dad got himself into all kinds of trouble back in the day." The older woman leaned back in her chair, smiling fondly at her memories, "Your mother though- now she was a no-nonsense lady, extremely talented, too-"

"Dad said she was one of the greatest Huntresses he ever met…" Eli folded his hands in his lap, eyes casting toward the floor.

"Don't interrupt, Eli… But he was right." A small smile spread across Ruby's face, "You're mother was one of the best."

* * *

 _Meanwhile:_

Ren took a step back, despite knowing his wife was far enough away that he was safe from her outburst. He watched as her icon glimmered so beautifully, but he still felt a twinge of fear, as even scroll calls with Nora could be intimidating. It was anyones guess as to why she was calling, but Ren figured she was calling about why he was late coming home.

"I lived a good life…" He sighed, finally answering the call.

"LEI REN! WHERE ARE YOU!?" Nora's voice boomed. "It's been exactly 9 hours since I've seen you and that isn't what we agreed to when we got married! We agreed that 5 hours is the minimum or you owe me-"

"Our daughter had gotten a detention and I had to file an incident repo-"

"Oh, I knew it! I knew it! I just knew that was the reason! I swear, that little girl is SO gonna get it when I get my hands on her!"

"Dearest-" Ren was cut off.

"When her butt gets home, I'm gonna give her the biggest hug she has ever gotten in her whole life! Oh!" Nora squealed proudly, causing Ren's ears to rattle. "Look at our baby, Ren! Showing those dweebs at Beacon who the real Power Houses are!"

"Nora, I believe you're missing the point…" Ren brought a hand to his forehead, feeling a slight headache begin to form,

"Do you think she'll want pancakes when she gets home? Cause I know I want pancakes when she gets home! Actually, I want them right no-" It was Ren's turn to cut Nora off this time.

"Nora, we talked about this. I can not drop everything at work to go make you pancakes…" There's was a pause on the other end of the phone, and if Ren hadn't been looking at his screen, he would have assumed his wife had hung up on him.

"Nora?"

"A-are you and Joan having pancakes without me?" The pure betrayal in Nora's voice almost caused a pang of guilt to run through Ren.

That was quickly forgotten once he remembered that he WASN'T having pancakes without his wife. That should have been made obvious when the conversation first started anyhow! With a sigh, he pushed that thought out of his mind and decided to just re-explain things.

"Nora-"

"Y-yes, traitor!?" Nora sniffled back.

"Love…" Ren started off, hoping to win Nora back over to REALITY with that. "I told you, our daughter got a detention-"

As if someone had flipped a switch, Nora was back to babbling about how proud she was, who she was going to tell, and just how bad she wanted pancakes. Then, without so much of a goodbye, the line went dead and Ren couldn't help but smile lightly.

"Looks like it's pancakes for dinner again…"

 _ **A/N: Another big shout-out to PurpleDragon6 for beta reading for me and helping me get this thing up on Archive of Our Own. It hasn't been officially posted there yet, but will shortly.**_

 _ **Also, keep your eyes out on tumblr, particularly the tag 'There's You in Everything I Do (RWBY)' for photos and bios of Team JUEL.**_


	3. Chapter 3

"Oh, come on, Arc! Don't be such a Corprol Dick-Von-Ass-Hat!"

Eli scowled to himself, feeling an emotional stab as those words followed him down the hall. He wasn't entirely angry with Uzziah, but he still found himself ready to pounce on the blonde and smack him around a bit.

'Hard-ass' was far from the right word to use to describe the older Arc; They HAD just destroyed a classroom completely, and he hadn't completely NOT dismissed the entire thing, just sorta under reacted to it.

"More like 'unable to make a decision on his own'..." Eli groaned, kicking an invisible speck of nothing on the floor. "And a jerk who can't leave mom out of the conversation- "

It must have been hard for Jaune to have to put aside the parent factor of their relationship and treat Eli as a student, rather than a son. Eli knew this, but he had talked in length with his father about it before he started at Beacon, which was nearly three months ago. All-in-all, he felt that they had kept things on a professional, nothing-like-you type relationship, except for times like this where Jaune absolutely DRAGGED out the 'mom' factor into every punishment involving-

"Elijah," Eli stopped in his tracks, his gaze settling on the floor. "Go talk to him…"

"Huh?" the redhead glanced up, his teammates slowly coming into view, "Oh...it was just Joan...She isn't wrong though-"

With a loud groan, Eli redirected himself, walking back to his father's office.

* * *

"I know, Nora, I'm the one who gave them the detention." Jaune groaned at the icon on his scroll, letting his hand rest on his forehead to stay propped up.

"So YOU were the one with the pancakes!?" He would have simply hung up at this point without so much as an explanation, except there was a knock at the door not drawn his attention upward.

"Nora, I'll have to call you later- Headmaster stuff and what not-." Jaune tried his best to be heard over the woman's mumbling, though he knew she probably wasn't paying attention anyway.

"Traitors!" Nora exclaimed, just as Jaune hit the end button and slipped his scroll back onto the desk, "Come in."

"Hey, dad…" Eli's eyes were casted to the floor, memorizing the four coffee stains on the otherwise flawless carpet of the office.

Ozpin would have a fit if he were to see this...

"Elijah- son- come in!" Jaune slowly reclined in his chair, tenting his fingers. "What can I do for you, kiddo?"

Eli took a few more steps, though he stopped before the desk in front of him, tapping his nails against the oak surface. It was after school hours- but he WAS still a student with a pending detention… How to act?

"Dad...Look, I'm sorry we-."

Jaune held up his hand, prompting the child to go silent very fast, "Eli, it's okay, you kids were just training- or something close to it..."

"I- hold on- wait, what?" Eli looked up to see his father's face relax, going from the headmaster of Beacon- to just his old dad.

"We busted a few things during our time at Beacon. Heck, we nearly drove Professor Oobleck to insanity." Jaune went on, sitting up a little straighter.

"Further insanity, you mean?" Eli asked, causing the older man to smile brightly.

"Yeah… Good times..." Jaune laughed, shaking his head slowly. "Anyway- Don't beat yourself up about it, buddy."

"I'm not-" Eli began, stopping went Jaune's face change from humor to confusion.

"Wait- I thought you came to talk about how guil-" He stopped himself with a quick wave of both hands. "Eh, nevermind."

There he goes- being undecided again!

"I just- remember three months ago when I said I wanted you to treat me like a regular student?" Eli allowed himself to sit, folding his hands in his lap.

"Yes…?" Jaune presses a little.

"I just- I know you miss her, but could you just cool it with the whole 'your mother' thing?" Eli finally bit out. "Please?"

"Y-your mother? R-right- your mother, she was a great student…" For a moment, Jaune's face falls.

"What!? Are you even listening?" Eli gasped, a little harsher than intended.

"Hey! Cut it with that tone, young man." Jaune demanded, going from dad Arc to Headmaster Arc in a split second.

"Ugh! You always do that too!" Eli groaned loudly, slapping his face angrily. "I don't know how to act around you sometimes!"

"What are you talking about?" Jaune frowned softly, "I always do what?"

"You act like my headmaster, but then you drag mom into things,which is kind of a dad thing, and- It makes things really hard on me... " Eli sighed, his head sinking onto his chest.

"Eli…"

"I know I'm your son, but I want to be more than 'Corporal Dick-Von-Ass-Hat Jr' here at Beacon…" Eli muttered.

"I don't get it-" Jaune began, only to quickly stand and walk over to his son's side. "So- you want me to stop talking about your mom?"

"Yes- no- I mean, I just want you to treat me like one of the students. Just a face in the crowd… maybe get more than a detention every once in awhile?" Eli offered, shrugging his shoulders. "Just while I'm at school, you know?"

Jaune studied his only child closely, but then smiled warmly and began to laugh a little. With a quick ruffle of his son's hair, it seemed that they were finally on the same page.

"So, you just want me to kick you around a bit more during school?" Jaune asked. "No more 'Mr. Nice Guy', just straight up 'General Dick-Von-Asshole?'"

"Von-Ass-Hat." Eli corrected, smiling a little. "And I guess-"

"Then get your butt to detention! You're half an hour late!" Jaune suddenly exclaimed in mock rage, gesturing boldly to the door.

"You got it, Headmaster Arc!" Eli laughed, springing from his chair, only to get pulled into a warm hug by the headmaster.

"I'll let you off with a warning this time, but this is the last time." Jaune cracked up, ruffling his son's hair again before sending him on his way.


	4. Chapter 4

"See you next detention, Aunt Ruby!" Joan yelled over her shoulder as she exited the hall.

Ruby leaned on the door frame, a look of pride forever plastered on her face as she went about her favorite part of any detention; Watching her favorite team run off to their dorms. However, that look faltered ever so slightly at a sudden thought. 

"Ya know," She called, "You can just come visit me in my office!"

* * *

"I never knew all that junk about my mom's arm." Liesbet tucked her arms behind her head, waiting as Uzziah struggled to unlock their dorm room door. "The fake one at least-"

"I love the part where MY mom knocked the opposing team out of the arena!" Joan cheered, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet at by the time her teammate has pushed the heavy door open.

"No, no. The best story is the gigantic food fight they had in their first year of Beacon." The blonde male sighed as he simply shook his head, walking into the room first.

"What? No!" Joan threw the snack pillow case onto the floor, leaping onto her bed, " That's the lamest story I have ever heard in the history of my life- Ever!"

"Ya know what my favorite story is?" Eli asked as he sank onto his mattress, casting a slight smirk in his partner's direction.

"The one with the Grimm-"

"No- The one where we all went to bed…" Eli bent to untie his boots, though a whack to his left shoulder sent him toppling to the floor as Joan stood over him.

"You can't be tired already! We were going to discuss our next detent-" A loan pillow cut Joan's rant short, "Right, well, whoever wants to own up to that can just shut off their alarm clock- 'cause they ain't wakin' up tomorrow."

* * *

Shrieks filled the air as students and teachers alike ran in all directions, their weapons clashing against herds of Grimm, scraping on the pavement once they missed. A tower falls somewhere in the distance and four teenagers lay helplessly on the ground.

"Save Pyrrha!" Jaune's voice sobbed desperately, heavy pants following.

"Where's Yang-" Ruby called, but her voice sounded too far away from Jaune's and too calm for them to be having a conversation together.

"Do you believe in destiny…?" This voice was different; calmed but pained.

A sudden, deep pain shoots throughout, but there's no screams this time. The cause is an arrow, but it has no origin- no explanation. Just a woman standing proudly over her kill, black hair and a red dress are morphed together into blurry blotches as tear filled eyes gaze back at her, and dying breaths exit in a choked rush around the arrow.

And then...there was nothing…

.

.

.

.

"Eli! Eli, wake up!"

It took a moment for the nothingness- the dark and the silence- to dissolve away completely into a dorm room on the fourth floor of Beacon. A rush of warmth and weight from being awake and breathing so rapidly suddenly hurry to Elijah, and the voice that broke him from his dream suddenly has a face. A soft pain in his chest is felt next, but the pain is now nothing more than the weight of another human.

"What? Joan, what's..-" Eli groaned in a groggy tone, still easily able to push the girl off of his chest while still doing his best to sit up.

"You were mumbling something, not the I was listening to you sleep, I just sense high energy in the room and I thought you were awake-"

"No. I just- I had this weird dream...It was at Beacon, but it was being attacked or something-" Eli groaned, taking a moment to call back the rest of his dream. "There was screaming and someone was looking for Aunt Yang- and then something about destiny- and I was shot...I think."

"Ooooh! Sounds like you had one of those weird dreams like my mom gets all the time! Like this one time, she had a dream my dad and her ran a rug store!" Joan exclaimed.

"Joan, it wasn't just weird...It felt real." Eli went on, trying to remember more of it. "And there was this woman in a red dress with dark hair who I don't remember at all."

"Real? Like it happened or real like it could happen?" With that, Joan folded her legs under her, planting herself firmly in one spot for what could be a very long conversation again.

"I think that first one- I mean, Beacon was attacked once, right?" Eli asked, running his hands over his blankets. "So it's not totally impossible, right?"

Joan tapped the tip of her nose, screwing up her face before leaping over the Uzziah's bed,

"Whoa! Joan! You gotta stop with that!" The blonde groaned, making no effort to shove the girl away like Eli had.

"Hey, you know a lot of history junk, right?" Joan got right to it, poking Uzziah hard in the chest.

"Ow! Yes, why?" He groaned, still too tired to even try to string together a proper sentence.

"Beacon was attacked, right?" She asked.

"Dude...It used to house one of the four relics. If you're thinking about a specific fight then you'll have to be more specific than that." With that, Uzziah finally sat up from his bed and began to stretch out.

"No. I mean, a BIG attack- Apparently one Aunt Yang was there for and some black haired lady in a dress."

"Aunt Yang…" Uzziah echoed, sounding as though he were off in his brain, already combing for an answer.

"What about my mom?" Liesbet muttered as she sat up in her bed, having been awoken by her teammates' discussion.

"Was she ever in some big battle at the school?" Joan went on, leading an investigation that Eli hadn't asked for.

"Yeah, the one that took her arm. Weren't you list-" A wave of the other woman's hand promptly shut Liesbet up, and Joan shot back to Eli's bed.

"So...Your dream took place at the fall of Beacon!" Joan's expression suddenly became sober, her hands coming to fold in her lap.

"Yeah, so that's why it felt so real-" Eli figured, pushing into a standing position and quickly kicking at the floor, finding his boots beneath yesterday's t-shirt.

"Where are you going?' Liesbet stood as well, watching the boy.

"I want to see just how much of this dream was real." He informed his teammate.

"Right now!? In the middle of the ungodly hours!?" Uzziah exclaimed. "Where could you possibly be going…"

"Well, where do we always go when we need to find more information?" Eli asked, pulling his boots on quickly, not even taking the time to tie them.

"Aunt Ruby?" Joan guessed.

"Oh please, at this hour? We'd have a better chance of breaking into my dad's office!"

"Your dad's office, then?" Joan guessed again, despite JUST being disproven.

"No, even better; the library…"


	5. Chapter 5

"You dragged us up at three in the morning so we could look at some old, dusty books?" Uzziah eased himself into one of the swivel chairs the library had to offer, casting a glare in Eli's direction. "Tell me again why that is?"

The redhead paid him no attention, pulling another book from the stack in front of him.

"It's not everyday you have a freaky dream about something that actually happened."

"Well, there was one time I had a dream I ate a paper plate, once, and that actually happened." Joan stretched her legs out in front of her, letting her fatigue get the better of her.

"True- But this one seems a little more... 'out of the norm'... You eating things that aren't food isn't." Eli corrected, pushing his book off to the side in favor of a different one.

He hadn't opened the cover yet, when Liesbet reached for his hands, attempting to swipe the book away from him.

"Eli, what are you looking for, exactly?" She asked, thumbing through the book quickly as if she already knew. "The fall of Beacon?"

"Answers…"

"To what?" Uzziah asked

"I doubt a book would have anything about your dream in it then. Eli, if you want answers about your dream, we may need to find a more direct source in the morning." Liesbet muttered.

"Hey, you never know what kinda answers may be lurking in these-"

"Answers, you say!?"

A voice called out from behind the group, startling them to shrill screams, followed by a sudden appearance of a man with greying green hair and glasses that slid down his nose. His shirt was untucked and he held a cup of coffee, despite the late hour... And despite the fact that the cup was completely empty.

When their panic left, Joan spoke first to him. "Uh…yeah, you seem old enough. Were you there for the Fall of-"

"A better question, Miss Valkyrie- If you ARE Miss Valkyrie- is what you are all doing here at this hour?" The man scoffed, hands on his hips as he waited.

"Well, actually, Miss Valkyrie is-" She began, but was cut off suddenly.

"Since you won't give me an answer, Yang- I think! What are you all doing here?" The man cast curious eyes at the blonde, who could only stumble on her words,

"Sun- Wait, now that's stretching it a bit- But you do have his nose... Whoever you are, can you explain your friends?" The man folded his arms, though it was Eli who spoke up.

"We're looking for answers; you see, I had this dream of the Fall of Beacon and-"

"Boy," The man cut in, "You don't need some old book to give you those answers, what you need is a historian…" With that, the man spun on his heel, "Luckily, I happen to be one."

Exchanging glances, Team JUEL stood, following the peculiar man as he suddenly tossed his cup aside and hurried back behind the bookcase he had apparently been behind earlier.

* * *

"Ah yes, I remember it like it didn't happen a year ago. Back when I was still just 'Crazy professor Oobleck' and what not." The man, Oobleck, paced his desk, straightening objects every few passes, "It was a tragic battle...we lost so many... But, we looked great doing it!"

"Were any of them a black haired woman? With fire powers?" Eli grunted, stacking up a few books to use as a chair.

"Black hair and fire? Well, that sounds like Cind-" The man was cut off by the chime of his own wristwatch, a bird darting out of the thing to chirp the time.

"Crazy Professor Oobleck?" Joan piped up just as the chirping stopped.

When Oobleck looked up, his face was suddenly very grim and sullen looking. He seemed to be angered with something, but it didn't seem like he was angry with Joan or the title- Just at something far away.

"We lost one of our star students that night…" Oobleck's eyes drifted toward the floor, then back to Eli.

His anger seemed to melt away, and was suddenly replaced by confusion, and curiosity. He swiftly went to the boy and plucked at a strand of Eli's red hair, watching it snap back into place like a rubber band.

"Um-?" Eli gasped, taking a step back quickly.

"You know...She had red hair too…Not as springy as yours, but the colour is almost the same." With a shrug, the old professor took a step back. "They just don't make red hair like your father- I assume for some reason- has."

"M-my mother! She- er... Her name was-" JUEL's third in command stuttered, furiously attempting to get his hair back into place. "She was the one that had red hair-"

"You don't know your mother's name…?" A quizzical look appeared on Oobleck's face.

"N-no- No... My dad- Your boss- never told-"

"MY boss…? What did you say your name was again?"

"Oh! I'm sorry- I guess I didn't tell you... My name is Eli Arc…"

"Arc...Are you related to a Jaune Arc?" Oobleck gasped, causing a collective groan to rise from the group.

"He just said that your boss is his dad. Learn to listen." Joan all but yelled bitterly.

"Jaune Arc- He was never married..Quite frankly, I only remember one girl showing even an inkling of an interest in him." Oobleck went on, ignoring the group.

"Yeah. My mother." Eli filled in.

"Couldn't be. Pyrrha Nikos was her name...But, she-" Oobleck paused, cut off by the sound of Eli standing quickly.

"My mom is Pyrrha Nikos? The athlete!?" With eyes wide, Eli's voice went from matter-of-fact to no-flipping-way.

"Well, you DO seem to have her hair…But thats-" Oobleck stopped, walking over to his coffee cup and inspecting it for what seemed to be no apparent reason.

"You knew her-" This was Uzziah's attempt to aid the conversation along.

"Of course I did! I just never knew she had a child…"

"Well, where is she living these days? Do you know?" Liesbeit asked, rolling her wrist a little as she spoke.

"Eli-" Oobleck addressed him, "There's no easy way for me to say this, but she's no longer of this realm…"

"...H-how-...?"

"She's BEEN dead for twenty-two years now…You see- she was one or the student we lost the night Beacon fell..." Oobleck sighed. "Witnesses say she took an arrow straight to the chest."

Silence fell around the group just as quickly as Beacon had.


	6. Chapter 6

"Twenty-two years…" Eli echos the number as if saying it out loud will make all the pieces fall into place. Glances are exchanged around him as the gears in his head kick into overdrive.

"Yes...she was hardly an adult at the time." Oobleck continues, reaching for a spoon on his desk to stir his empty cup. Upon realizing the cup to be empty, Oobleck set it down, instead, busying himself with scrubbing at his glasses with his shirt.

"Then that means Pyrrha isn't my mom because I wasn't born yet…" Eli fidgets, Oobleck's right hand tapping furiously on the desk before him.

"But then the question remains of- Whom?" Oobleck muttered, leaning in slowly to Eli. "Who was the one that stole Mr. Arc's heart in the end."

"Thats a real mystery." Joan reached out and grabbed all of her friends. "And since you asked it in such a creepy way, we're going to just head out then and get back to you on that in the morning. Kay?"

"Do you promise?" Green hair fell in front of amused eyes, making the children wonder if he was serious.

"Yes. We'll have a conversation with Jaune." Joan assured him.

"Wait-" Eli was silenced by Joan's hand pressing over his mouth.

"Eli, We can talk to your dad in the morning… " Uzziah groaned, willingly being dragged away by Joan.

"Yeah, Yeah. In the morning…" Eli muttered, eyes darting back to the old professor suddenly. "Thank you."

"Anytime, children." Oobleck's tone had snapped back to amused, waving the children out.

The members of Team JEUL slunk back to their room, experiencing total silence for the first time. Part due to sleep, and part due to the dread that a conversation with Headmaster Arc would bring to them regardless of what the topic was.

(Line)

A sudden energy in the room woke Joan Ren up with a start, as it sometimes did. At that, she cursed the sense she shared with her father; the ability to sense things before they came.

"Eli," She called over, watching his hunched figure in the dim lighting of the room.

His shoulders trembled slightly, his head resting heavily on his pillow. He was awake, but quickly falling back to sleep.

"Joan...Do you have a prediction for me?" The redhead grunted, hunching further into his pillow. "Or whatever your sixth sense does..."

Joan stood from her own bed, crossing the room to close the distance between them. Eli stirred a little more, attempting to give her more than a quarter of his attention.

"All this talk about your mom lately- I think it's going to be important later…" Joan admitted, scratching her head. "You really don't remember her?"

"No...Beacon fell twenty-two years ago…" Eli muttered, craning his head to rest on Joan's lap.

"You mean maybe he was wrong about your dad?" Her left arm wrapped around Eli's frame. "Or are you about to pass out?"

"I don't remember my mom's name." Eli sighed tiredly. "Didn't matter til now."

"You never asked your dad for her name once?" She sounded skeptical.

"Its weird talking to my dad. Hes a weird type of Arc." A yawn.

"You're an Arc too. Rather you like it or not." The girl turned her gaze to the dorm window.

It hadn't changed since Joan had first looked up at it, but it felt different somehow. Eli seemed to notice it too, shaking off just enough sleep to sit up a little and look up at it. Its size, shape, and shine hadn't changed. Even the scene of tree branches and the bright moon in the dark sky seemed to be on a stand still.

Behind them, the darkness of the room swelled. Their eyes adjusting to see only the light of the moon and not the room they were tucked away in.

"I always liked nights like this." Another yawn. "My dad used to let me stay up with him, and we'd watch the stars."

"It sounded like you two used to be close..." Joan muttered. "Not close enough to ask about your mom though?"

"No... More so lately..." Eli admitted. "Its weird talking to your headmaster as your dad."

"I have no idea what you mean." Joan smiled.

"I figured..."

"Get some sleep, Eli…" She whispered.

Eli didn't respond, so she felt it safe to assume that he had fallen asleep.

* * *

Mornings at Beacon were always beautiful. Calm and quiet, large windows letting in drops of golden sun (or of rain, depending on the days weather), and warm faces of familiar friends waking up near you as you all rise from your rest-

"Okay, so I'm not say anything, but who else do we know associated with the color red?"

-Okay, so maybe not ALL mornings at Beacon were great...

"Humor us, Uzz." Liesbet sighed, running the back of her hand over her eyes.

Uzziah grinned a boyish grin, while the others glared at him. They had been at this since they woke up, forming theories on who the woman of Eli's dreams (literally) was, and how or who else could possibly be his mother. They planned to ask Headmaster Arc later on, but right now they were placing their bets, and the blonde was about to answer when Eli shot up suddenly.

"I swear, if you say Aunt Ruby, I will-"

"Now, wait- don't shoot it down yet!" Uzziah laughed as he tossed his blanket off his legs. "Come on, man, don't be like that. We've already ruled out Pyr-"

"Wait! We can't rule her out yet!" Joan tossed her arms up, frantically waving.

"Why not?" Liesbet asked as she pushed off her bed, suddenly concerned for the girl.

"Because the window in our dorm is messed up and I have money on her!"

Glances were exchanged between the remainder of Team JEUL before they all began to shake their heads slowly, assuming their friend had finally lost it. Undoubtedly due to the "Valkyrie" side of her family.

"... Moving on-"

"No, wait! Eli, you remember, right? Last night, the window-it-" Joan scrambled for the words, though Eli's expression answered her question. "THE window was strange!"

"Joan, you say that about every window." Eli offered, scraping his nails down his neck. "So I'm just going to assume you mean you broke another window."

"Eli, I-"

"Okay, can I bet my money's worth on Penny? She had red hair too, didn't she?" Liesbet rubbed her arm.

"No, she died, too." Joan mumbled, glancing at the window once more. "Plus her hair was more orange."

"Mrs. Ren has red hair, too-"

"Its ORANGE, Uzziah!" Joan snapped, reaching for a nearby pillow, but was stopped by Eli stepping between the two.

"Hey, here's an idea. Let me just ask my dad now abou-"

"I bet on the answer going to be asexual reproduction," Uzziah said, folded his arms, "Only other explanation."

And with that, a flurry of pillows was sent in the young Wukong's direction.

"Okay! Now the bets are placed and it's up to Eli and Mr. Arc's answers to determine who gets the pot!" Joan announced, pushing Eli towards the door.

"I'll try not to let you guys down? I guess so." Eli sighed as he stepped out into the hall.

* * *

The trek to his dad's office never seemed so long for the young Arc. Even when he'd spend his days at the school as a young child, the halls never seemed so vast and maze like. Every now and again, Eli had to stop and make sure he was still going the right path.

"Chill…" He muttered to himself, "It's just dad..Besides, it's not the craziest thing to ask about- Its just hugely disappointing if he finds out I don't remember mom's name... Crap…"

The words put no encouragement into Eli's stride and in no way eased the journey. He dreaded every step towards the office, until Eli finally made it to his destination. Despite how long it took just to get there, the sudden urge to turn and run in the opposite direction began to play in the back of his mind and begged him to go back.

"So, what are you saying?" A harsh voice coming from inside the office cut through Eli's thoughts, causing the boy to take a step back.

"Nothing, Jaune! I'm just saying our children have been out of control as of late." Ren's voice replied.

"Ren, it's just harmless fun. Something YOU wouldn't know about." The blonde mused.

"Jaune, as your friend and brother, I only think it fair to point out that an attitude like yours seems to be the source of the problem." Ren huffed a little. "He learns from you."

"Hey, my son-" Jaune began, but suddenly stopped.

"Is outside the door…" Ren muttered softly.

Eli sucked in a breath and took another quick step back, knowing that they now knew exactly who stood beyond that door. There was no use running now.

"Eli; skipping class again, I see." Ren began, pushing the door open enough to stand in the frame.

Eli's first instinct was to look up at the older man, a sign of respect, though his second instinct was to drop to the floor and die; it would be the only way out at this point.

"I, uh. No," The red head found his voice, bowing lowly to the man before him. "No. I came to talk to my dad, sir…"

Ren raised an eyebrow, stepping out of the way and lifting his hand as a gesture for the boy to enter. Eli found himself moving robotically, his eyes trained on the metal nameplate on his father's desk. Just beyond the name, Jaune sat with his hands folded under his chin, light from the window catching the lenses of his glasses harshly.

"Elijah Arc." Jaune greeted in his "official headmaster voice". "What is this about-"

"No, it's not-" The boy spoke, before quickly adding, "Probably should have let you finish, sorry…"

"Again... Elijah, what is this about?" Headmaster Arc sighed. "If it's about our talk about you wanted to be treated normally-"

"Its not, sir." Eli sighed softly.

"Then what?" Ren cut in, resting against the door frame.

Eli sucked in a breath, using his willpower and maybe even part of his aura to refrain from cursing the older man down to hell. He loved Uncle Ren to remnant and back, but something about having him in the room made Eli uncomfortable.

"I need to ask you abo-" Eli tried to spit it out anyhow.

He didn't get very far, as someone else seemed to hear him in the process... Someone who he tried harder not to curse than he did with Ren.

"Is that my favorite nephew!?" Ruby screeched from down the hall, tilting her head past her desk. Her smile did nothing to lift the mood.

"Uh, Ruby, we're trying to-" Jaune began but was cut off by the woman, who could be heard jumping from her seat and making her way to the office.

"What brings you here?" She squeaked when she finally arrived.

"I...I need to know about my mother-"

"You're mother tongue? English?" Ruby began, but Eli shook his head. "Oh! You mean your mom! You know, she was-"

"The best, I know. But, who was she? What was her name?" Eli turned his gaze onto his father now, who much to his surprize, appeared amused and was smiling.

"The most perfect woman with a name to match." Jaune began, leaning on his hands a little, looking so in love for a second, but not any longer.

"And that name was?" Eli groaned.

"Pyrrha." A loud gasp caused all of the adults to jump.

"How did that happen!? She died 22 years ago, and last I checked, I'm not 22 yet!" Red hair went flying in fury.

"Eli, I've told you the story before…" Jaune straightened up in his seat, folding his hands on his desk. "Five years after the fall of Beacon, Team RNJR- The four of us and Qrow, were out on a mission…"

"I don't remember ever hearing this."

"I remember that day. We had just come across a village; it had been completely destroyed." Ren took up the next part.

"Still not ringing any bells."

"There was no chance of survivors, like at all! It was a total mess and disaster area, and yet-" Ruby wiggled her fingers next to her head in a spooky type way.

"Okay! Can ONE of you just tell the story already, please!?"

"I found you in the middle of a clearing. You had this light around you and you were fast asleep with barely a scratch on you, and when I looked up to see what had protected you, I saw her…" Jaune sighed wistfully.

"Who?"

"My Pyrrha...She was there and was watching over you, buddy. She had you wrapped up in her arms until we got there." Jaune's voice is hardly above a whisper, "Eli, I've told you this story every night before you went to bed for years."

"So, you're telling me...I...No." Eli looked to Jaune for answers, though it was Ren who spoke up.

"Eli, not even I can explain how you could have survived that night in any logical way; the onlt explanation, was that it was your moth-"

"But Pyrrha isn-"

"Now, let me finish; if you still don't believe Pyrrha is your mother, just remember who taught your father how to fight, how to protect others, as well as his semblance. These things have kept both of you alive long enough to find each other." Ren went on, earning a melancholic smile from Jaune. "Your father taught you these things too, but remember that it was your mother who started it."

"She's in everything we do, buddy…" Jaune mumbled, rising from his desk. "And that's why she's your mom."

"And, you're an Arc rather you like it or not." Ruby stepped forward to place a hand on the young man's shoulder.

Eli wrinkled his nose, gazing up at Jaune. He felt rather unemotional over something the others were so worked up over, for whatever reason.

"So, it was...mom's death that I saw in my dream…" He guessed.

"The night Beacon fell…" Jaune nodded his head, "Professor Oobleck informed me of your 'visit' to the library."

"I just needed to know." Eli offered a faint smile, turning back toward the door. "Guess we owe Joan some money now..."

"What- oh, nevermind." Ren huffed, quickly leaving the room with Ruby.

Eli was about to follow them out too, when Jaune called out to his son again-

"Hey, buddy," Jaune called, prompting the boy to stop,

"Yes?"

"The door is always open…"

* * *

Feeling now was a good time to make up for lost sleep, Eli found himself back in the dorm; it was quiet now that his roommates had cleared out to go to class.

He dropped onto his bed, exhaling lowly, "What a day," The boy said out loud, glancing at the window beside his bed, "What was it Joan was going on about-? The window was busted or-"

"Eli…"

This prompted the boy to sit, knowing full well he was the only one in the room. Glaring back at the window, which remained unchanged, Eli stood, backing toward his weapon. The voice had been unlike anything he had ever heard before, and yet, he felt a sort of sorrow fill him.

"M-mom?"

A pause. A silence fell. Though, this time it was not at all heavy, rather it was, comfortable; Familiar in a way.

"Yes."

 **A/N: Part 1 of the Team JEUL Universe is done! Now on to Joan's story and a few sub stories to tie up loose ends. Hope ya stick around and thanks for reading!**

 **Title Comes From: I Bet My Life by Imagine Dragons.**


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